Alila Seminyak

Sitting pretty on a long stretch of basaltic sand on Bali’s upmarket Seminyak coast is the new boutique hotel from Alila. A modernist vision of sleek lines and dark wood. Their environmentally sustainable architecture, with an open-air design, keeps lighting and cooling needs to a minimum with a cool breeze throughout.

A haven of tropical minimalism. The open, airy lobby with vertical gardens and sunken seating, stares out to a 200-year-old Hindu temples, with waves coming crashing in from the Indian Ocean. Three sleek infinity pools, one for each type of guest, extend towards the sea showcasing the hotels modern approach. 

The 220 rooms are low-key luxury with plenty of space and lots of fancy finishing touches. Maintaining the minimalist approach, the rooms are a perfect mix of Balinese stone, dark words and natural fabrics in cool wheat-coloured tones. Sliding doors hide away the glamorous bathroom and dressing area, complete with locally made amenities, including sunscreen and pillow mist, beach bags and yoga mats. Rooms face out to the sea, with the pool beneath, waking up to the crashing of the waves.

The super cool beach bar is prepared with oversized armchairs, zesty cocktails and chilled house tunes for the perfect sundowner. The terrace upstairs serves up breakfast, lunch and dinner, although there were very few vegan options so I walked down the road to the ultra-instagrammable Sea Circus instead.